I am SO hype for the upcoming official Phantasy Star Tabletop RPG, even more so since the team at Skybound has confirmed that there will be no genAI elements, nor do they condone it. HUGE props to them for being open about it in a time when genAI is so rampant.
Sure, it's not the biggest thing, but it goes to show how much they care about what they're making, how much they care about their artists, and how much they care about the Phantasy Star series that they're willing to put the hard work in to make it great.
And speaking of that human-made art, it's freaking GORGEOUS what they've revealed so far!
This illustration of the Phantasy Star II gang was shared in their recent newsletter, which I totally recommend signing up for if you want to see some previews of the game for yourself. I love Shir's little smile of delight as she's about to loot something, meanwhile it seems Rudo (who looks SO HANDSOME, I might add) is altering his teammates about, probably incoming trouble (maybe robots, seeing that they've got Kain with them).
Speaking of Phantasy Star II, they've got this INCREDIBLE illustration of the iconic Nei vs Neifirst battle. I seriously love this rendition of Neifirst, all decked out in armor and looking more unique than just Nei, but blue.
And guess what? You'll ALSO be able to play as a Musk Cat! Just like best boy Myau from the first game! Look how well they captured his catlike charm.
Preorders of the book will also come with a stand-alone oneshot adventure featuring the cast of the first game, who are looking just so awesome on the cover art.
The gameplay is based on Esper Genesis, which is a unique system that is mechanically similar to DnD, so it shouldn't be too difficult to figure out if you're familiar with that.
They're putting a lot of work into incorporating the lore of the entire series (including Phantasy Star Online) and storytelling over generations, just like how the games are, like, 1000 years apart but still interconnect. There's just so much love being poured into this project, and the lack of genAI is just icing on the delicious cake!
I, for one, cannot WAIT to start running adventures inspired by one of my favorite RPG Video Games of all time.
Discover a new Tabletop Roleplaying experience in the Phantasy Star storyverse!
Primcrest (58) has had her kits! There are two of them, a boy and a girl, and she won’t say anything about who their other parent is. And their magic? Both of them are pretty weak, which is interesting because their mother has such strong magic. And both are dark-cursed. Frecklestone (43), of course, feels no need to hide this from Creekstar (70), who is perfectly fine keeping them in the Clan. Primcrest names the tom, who’s already trying to escape the nursery, Dawnkit (0) after Skydawn. And the she-kit, who’s already trying to boss her brother around, Flowerkit (0), after Shadestar (who’s warrior name was Shadeflower). The rest of the Clan is glad to have new members, but some of them are a little nervous around more dark-cursed cats, including Queenyspeckle (92) and Xhosa (84). In fact, Xhosa is so annoyed that Creekstar kept the kits in the Clan that she goes to the leader and complains. Creekstar remains firm in her decision, remembering the hardships she and Primcrest when they were young. The kits are staying. In other news, the Clan has discovered that Smokekit (5) is deaf. She isn’t bothered by it, although it has made learning to talk challenging. Chiku (150), who remembers how Yuccawillow dealt with being hard of hearing, is teaching her some signs. Charipeak’s (82) kits don’t really care what magic their new den-mates have. They’re just excited to have more cats to play with, including Primcrest. Tumblekit (5) even challenges Primcrest to a race. Patchkit (5), being slightly older than her fellow kits, is feeling a little out of place. They don’t really play with her, and she wishes that her pelt were as pretty as Smokekit’s. Or that she could glow like her mom. She could light herself on fire, but that wouldn’t have the same effect as a glowing cat. Creekstar does spoil her daughter a little. She always makes sure to bring her a treat back from hunting. Patchkit eagerly awaits it. Rubblepaw (12) is a little frustrated that he’s not a warrior yet, so Wildcave (99) is giving him some advice.
This is a big moon for Primcrest (23). Her first apprentice has been made a warrior with the name of Elmroot (11) in honor of his dedication. Which means. . .it’s time for her to become deputy! She’s excited. And nervous. Creekstar (35) and her father, Fry (88), tell her she’s going to do great and reassure her that she won’t be on her own. She appreciates their support, but she wishes that her mother were here. She misses her. Primcrest is made deputy, and, for the first time since Skydawn died, ElementClan has returned to having a dark-cursed leader and deputy. The rumors from the other Clans start again and Creekstar wonders what will happen with their allies. Fry is excited to just be a warrior again and has been spending more time with Astertwist (17). Tornpaw (8) is doing well in warrior training, although Gladepatch (57) makes sure to keep a close eye on him. He doesn’t want the paralyzed cat to unknowingly hurt his back legs. Tornpaw doesn’t mind visiting the healer's den. Gladepatch is great at telling jokes and Poolbounce (17) is always nice to him. Rabbitfur (37) misses her siblings, but she’s glad her sister’s kits are doing well. She makes sure to surprise Astertwist (17) with help on patrol. Poolbounce is feeling a little left out with his brother getting so much attention. He’s taken to spending time with Primcrest and realizes that he really enjoys spending time with her. Still feeling like he should be doing more, Glowquake (17) is working on his fighting skills by sparring with Rabbitfur. He’s pretty proud when he manages to knock her over with a powerful gust of wind. Even if she is recovering from a mangled tail. He’s also quite proud of himself when he uses his wind powers to pin down a rabbit from afar while on patrol with Creekstar.
Meta: Just so you know, Fry did not step down on his own. I manually made him retire from deputy and replaced him with Primcrest.
Only canon ships are included here (aka, the ones where the cats have become mates). If you have any cats that you ship in ElementClan right now that aren't mates, let me know!
Enjoy this little piece I wrote in memory of Brightshard.
Brightshard listened. It was what she did. She couldn’t conjure tidal waves, throw fire, or kill with a touch.
But she could listen.
She heard Brightfalcon bemoaning her own worthlessness, but refrained from commenting. No cat was worthless.
She heard Egretshell playing in the rain when he thought no one was looking. He was right, but sight isn’t the only sense.
She heard Stormrush teasing her brother and heard the eye roll in Bushmask’s response. She heard the way the ash crunched under Nightingaletree’s feet after a battle, and the way that Shadestar prayed to StarClan at night to keep her Clan safe.
But most of all, Brightshard heard Skydawn.
Brightshard heard her comforting Brightfalcon and splashing water at Egretshell. She heard her praising Bushmask and tussling with Stormrush. She heard the way that Skydawn looked up to Nightingaletree, and how she always stood at Shadestar’s shoulder.
But beneath it, Brightshard heard the way Skydawn’s insecurity leached through her calm demeanor. She heard the sobs that Skydawn tried to stifle when she dreamt of death by her paws. She heard the darkness behind the dawn. And she loved it all.
Brightshard knew that her odds were poor. She knew her role. She wasn’t the best fighter or a powerful leader. She wasn’t the beating heart of the Clan.
But maybe she could be the silent support, the oxygen fueling the pulse. If Skydawn would let her.
So when she heard Skydawn approaching, heard the hesitant, steady, and gentle rhythm of her paws against the ground, Brightshard decided to ask.
Will you let me stand beside you? Will you let me love you? Will you let my heartbeat match yours?
That day, Brightshard decided that she had heard the most beautiful thing she ever would. It was a single word, but filled with all the love and joy that Brightshard had hoped for, and more.
Skydawn’s (89) tail has fully healed, and she didn’t even get a scar out of it. Darn. Must have been due to her dark-curse. She’s not thrilled about not having a scar, although she is glad that Brightshard (72) doesn’t seem to care. Brightshard wishes she could become a mediator (she thinks she would be better at it than Egretshell-116), but only water-powered cats are allowed that position. And she is powerless. Most days it doesn’t bother her, but some days, the prejudice stings. Icyglint is still getting used to the Clan and got in a small argument with Shadestar (115) over how patrolling works. Sunflower (84) is not thrilled with Bushmask (29) and thinks he’s not very considerate. She’s getting a sense of why he’s an outsider. Egretshell is still learning more about Icyglint, this time through eavesdropping. Fire-blessed cats can be dangerous. He has to know what’s going on in her head. Shadestar uses her time with Nightingaletree (109) to work on her own fire powers. She may be skilled in all the elements, but she could still improve.
Age 95 moons; dark-cursed with a power level of 63 (high medium); Adventurous and very smart
Shadestar is the first dark-cursed leader of ElementClan. The medicine cat when she was a kit didn't tell anyone that Shadekit was dark-cursed for fear she would be killed. Shadekit herself didn't even realize she was dark-cursed until she became an apprentice. She thought she was just a water-blessed cat, like the rest of her family. However, as an apprentice she instinctively used her dark magic to catch and kill a crow. She was scared and hid her powers from everyone, although, being smart, she trained herself in secret. She had mastered all six powers available to her by the time she was a young warrior. She kept her powers hidden until a gang of foxes attacked the camp. She used her 'death-touch' to kill all the foxes but spare all of her clanmates, both exposing herself as dark-cursed and proving herself. Considering she saved the Clan, she gained her Clanmates' trust and rose in ranks to become leader.
Deputy: Skydawn
Age 70 moons; dark-cursed with a power level of 58 (medium); Calm and smart
Unlike Shadestar, Skydawn was revealed as a dark-cursed cat when she was a kit. The medicine cat and her mother wanted to kill her, but the leader stepped in. Shadeflower had just revealed her magic to save the Clan and the leader saw the benefits of allowing dark-cursed cats to live. So long as they could prove they weren't allied with the Dark Forest. So Skykit got to live, although she was treated poorly by her clanmates, including her mother and littermates. Shadeflower wanted to mentor her, but the leader wouldn't let her (their trust of dark-cursed cats only went so far). Instead, Skypaw was trained by another young warrior at the time, Nightingaletree, a fiery and jealous young cat. Skypaw's training was hard and she felt ostracized by the Clan, but seeing Shadeflower rise in ranks and respect encouraged her. Because of Nightingaletree's harsh training, Skypaw's warrior ceremony was delayed (which meant that, by the time she was made a warrior, Shadestar was already leader). When on a border patrol with Nightingaletree, the two of them were attacked by a group of rival Clan cats. The other cats would have killed Nightingaletree, if Skypaw hadn't stepped in and used her powers to protect her mentor. She killed their attackers and proved herself to ElementClan. After this, Shadestar gave her the warrior name of Skydawn, emphasizing that even dark-cursed cats can bring the light of dawn.
Healer: Brightfalcon
Age 43 moons; earth-blessed with a power level of 10 (very low); lonesome and a great fighter
It is a rule that earth-blessed cats must become medicine cats. Thus, even though her powers are limited and her skills better suited to fighting, Brightfalcon had to become a medicine cat. She feels alone in a Clan of immensely powerful cats, who can conjure up storm, inferno, or death with barely a thought. Meanwhile, she can barely make her herbs grow. Conjuring up an earthquake or moving more than a pebble is way out of her reach. She doesn't realize it, but she makes up for this with her attention and dedication to her Clanmates. They know they can always trust her to heal them, even if it has to be the old-fashioned way instead of with magic.
Warriors
Egretshell
Age 96; water-blessed with a power level of 60 (medium high); Calm and an excellent speaker
Nightingaletree
Age 89 moons; fire-blessed with a power level of 95 (very high); Confident and a great fighter
As the most magically powerful cat in the Clan, Nightingaletree always expected to be leader. Her fire-powers outperformed even those of the star-blessed leader and she thought for sure she was the obvious choice fore deputy. Until Shadeflower revealed her dark-cursed powers and proved herself. Nightingaletree is still bitter about being overlooked to this day, although she has learned to accept that Shadestar makes a good leader. That won't stop her from being jealous of Skydawn's deputyship, though.
Brightshard
Age 53 moons; powerless; playful and a great hunter
As the only magicless cat in the Clan, Brightshard easily could have let it get to her (like how Brightfalcon lets her low power-level get to her), but she didn't. She keeps a good attitude and is hard-working. Even without the advantage of magic, she is a fantastic hunter and can always make her clanmates laugh. In turn, they love and protect her, always making sure that she is safe in battle against other Clans.
Apprentices:
Stormpaw
Age 11 moons; wind-blessed with a power-level of 57 (medium); loyal and an excellent speaker
Bushpaw
Age 9 moons; wind-blessed with a power-level of 51; righteous and a fantastic hunter
Although Bushpaw and Stormpaw are not bio siblings, they view themselves as brother and sister. They are the youngest cats in the Clan the same type of magic. They grew up together and are siblings in everything but blood.
A bit of meta: You may have noticed that Egretshell, Nightingaletree, Brightshard, and Stormpaw's sprites look different from the others. That's because I don't have access in-game to these cats' sprites and took their pictures on my phone right when I was starting to play. That's also why Stormpaw has her adult sprite instead of her apprentice one.
